Southwest Airlines Prepares to Haul International Cargo

The Dallas-based airline flies about 4,000 flights per day, but is a relative newcomer to international markets after acquiring AirTran and beginning service to Mexico and the Caribbean.

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded Southwest slots to fly to Cuba following a thaw in diplomatic relations with the United States that is slowly opening up trade and travel opportunities.

“The challenge we have is our back office systems that we’ve built to support our cargo product over many years are built for domestic. So we’re replacing our point-of-sales system and our back office system to be able to accommodate international air cargo,” Devereaux said.